Ousted Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett steps up attacks on Austin Metcalf verdict as she defends his jailed killer Karmelo Anthony

Published: 01:23, 11 June 2026 | Updated: 01:24, 11 June 2026 Woke Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett doubled down on her claims that the verdict in the Karmelo Anthony trial was racist as she slammed the jury for sentencing him to 35 years behind bars. The ousted Democrat from Texas, 45, argued to TMZ that Anthony, 19, was wrongfully convicted of murder on Tuesday in the fatal stabbing of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf - calling it 'evidence of a broken [justice] system.' She noted that Anthony, a black teenager, only struck Austin, who was white, once but will now be in prison for at least 17 and a half years before he is eligible for parole. 'Thirty-five years for a kid who decided to go under a tent that was not his team's tent as it was raining, and simply didn't want to be put out in the rain by some random kid that he didn't know who was larger than him?' Crockett said incredulously of the jury's sentencing verdict. 'Listen, a lot of people don't know what it is to live as a black person in this country,' she continued. Crockett went on to hit out at people who she claimed give the benefit of the doubt to so many police officers when they go out and 'shoot some black unarmed person' but did not show 'mercy' or 'humanity' to Anthony when he said he was scared. Anthony's defense team argued that he was acting in self defense, saying that Metcalf weighed 80lbs more than Anthony, of Frisco in Texas, and that he was taller than his killer.  When the TMZ reporter then countered that many were wondering why Anthony brought a knife to a high school track meet in April 2025, Crockett responded: 'Yeah, people may say that. But walk a day in my shoes and then respond, because we, as black folks, say "Why is it that people need long arm guns when we are going out and having a First Amendment protest?" 'But people say that's their right, they're allowed to do that.'  Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett doubled down on her claims that the verdict in the Karmelo Anthony trial was racist on Wednesday Anthony, 19, was found guilty on Tuesday of murdering 17-year-old Austin Metcalf at a high school track meet last year and was sentenced to 35 years in prison Crockett, who was ousted from Congress after Texas state lawmakers approved a new redistricting map, also argued that 'it wasn't against the law' for Anthony to have the knife. 'It may have been prohibited by school rules, which he wasn't at his school at the time, but it definitely wasn't against the law.' When the congresswoman was then asked whether she believed race played a role in the verdict, she said: 'Oh my God, I know Collin County, so absolutely,' referring to the county where Anthony's trial was held. 'And unfortunately that was not the county for a black boy.' At that point, the journalist asked Crockett whether she believed a white teenager who committed the same crime against a black teenager would have received the same sentence. 'I would guarantee you, it wouldn't have happened,' she insisted. 'I don't even know if he would have been convicted, because if a white boy would have said they were afraid of a black boy, something tells me that that jury that didn't have any black people on it, they would have believed him in his fear.'  Crockett previously argued that Anthony was acting in self-defense in an episode of her nearly two-hour long show 'Clock It with Crockett' Crockett had earlier argued that the hands of a football player, which Metcalf was, could be considered lethal weapons. She also spoke about the pocket knife used by Anthony to kill the teenager which was shown to the jury but images of it have not yet been shared with the media.  Despite having never seen it, she said: 'I would have argued by the size of it alone that it wasn't a deadly weapon, if it was one of the little ones. But I don't know.' Towards the end of her nearly two-hour long show 'Clock It with Crockett' on Tuesday, she even seemed to play down the pain of the Metcalf family for the loss of their son.  She said: 'Black women especially black women who have black male children live in fear and agony every single day. 'A fear and agony that I promise you the Metcalfs probably never spend a day living that way.' But the Metcalf family delivered some heart-wrenching victim impact statements following Anthony's sentencing. Austin Metcalf's father, Jeff Metcalf, hit out at his son's killer in court on Tuesday for not being able to look him in the eye 'There is a part of him you can never take away from me or anyone who loves Austin. What it meant to be loved by him. It's the love that I can continue to have in my heart. 'He was taken from us just as he was starting to really live,' the slain teen's mom said as she addressed Anthony directly. 'You may have just been given a sentence of 35 years behind bars but you can consider yourself lucky because I've been sentenced to a lifetime without my son,' she added. Metcalf's father, Jeff, also delivered an impact statement on Tuesday evening. He told the court how his family was 'robbed' of seeing Austin grow up, and expressed his grief that he couldn't defend his son. He went on to express the 'unfiltered rage' he has experienced since his son was murdered, saying Austin's death 'didn't just break my heart' but also destroyed his 'sense of safety' and 'faith in people.' The murder case shocked America, and the discussion surrounding the killing of a white teenager by a black peer quickly became racially fraught.  Supporters for Anthony leaned on one another as the guilty verdict was announced Anthony's supporters have also claimed he had been treated unfairly in the trial because he is black, and there were no black members on the jury. Twelve jurors and six alternates, who are mostly white, with the exception of three Hispanics, two Asians, and two from the Middle East and India, had been selected to decide Anthony's fate.  During jury selection, defense attorneys raised a Batson challenge: a legal objection used when it is believed potential jurors were struck off because of race. The teenage killer has now filed a notice of appeal on Wednesday - less than 24 hours after he learned his fate for fatally stabbing Metcalf in the heart, legal documents obtained by TMZ detailed.  The convicted murderer's lawyer, Mike Howard, told the outlet that his legal team told the court that they would be appealing right after the trial concluded.  'We believe there are several important issues for the appellate courts to consider. An appeal is the next part of the legal process and a right afforded every American,' Howard said.  No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? 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